Melanie Joosten Wins the Kathleen Mitchell Award
Melanie Joosten's novel Berlin Syndrome has won the 2012 Kathleen Mitchell Award. The prize, awarded biennially, is worth $15,000, and is specifically targeted at younger authors. Joosten's novel was described by the judges as a 'psychological thriller that is an exploration of obsession, captivity and the cumulative guilts of the past'.
The judges also highly commended Jessica Au's novel Cargo, saying, 'This rites of passage novel powerfully demonstrates the impact of place as a shaping force in young lives'.
Expressing her thanks for the win, Joosten said: 'Awards such as this one really help with finding an audience.'
The Kathleen Mitchell Award was established in 1996, with the aim of encouraging 'the advancement, improvement and betterment of Australian literature, to improve the educational style of the authors, and to provide them with additional amounts and thus enable them to improve their literary efforts.'
Previous winners include Nam Le, 2010 winner for The Boat, Markus Zusak for The Book Thief in 2006, and Sonya Harnett, the 1996 winner for Sleeping Dogs. The press release has more information.